July 18, 2014 – Charlotte Hornets General Manager Rich Cho announced today that the team has signed free agent guard Lance Stephenson. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We are extremely excited to add Lance to our team,” Cho said. “He is a great up-and-coming player with an incredibly high ceiling. He is an exceptional athlete who has the versatility and skill to play multiple positions on both offense and defense. We believe he will be an outstanding addition to our roster.”

The 6-5 Stephenson finished second in NBA Most Improved Player voting last season after leading the league with five triple-doubles and averaging career highs of 13.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 35.3 minutes in 78 games played for the Pacers. He also set career highs in field goals (427), field goal percentage (.491), three-point field goals (86) and three-point percentage (.352). Stephenson scored in double figures 64 times, including 13 games of 20 points or more. He also recorded 22 double-figure rebounding games and six double-figure assist games, tallying 20 double-doubles.

In addition to his career highs, Stephenson’s single-season totals in 2013-14 surpassed his previous three-year career totals in points, rebounds, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, assists, field goals, three-point field goals and free throws. He also saw action in 19 playoff games, averaging 13.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 37.1 minutes.

Stephenson was originally selected by the Pacers with the 40th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. He has played in 216 career games, all for the Pacers, with averages of 9.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists. In 42 career playoff games, he has averaged 10.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 33.1 minutes.